EXCLUSIVE: SHELBY HITS SENATE DEMS ON JOBS BILL - Senate Banking Committee Ranking Member Richard Shelby has written a letter to Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) complaining that Republican proposals to increase capital formation, including those passed by the House in the JOBS Act, have been ignored by Senate Democrats despite bipartisan support. ... From the letter: “In my view, this Committee should be able to craft capital formation legislation on a bipartisan basis. It is my understanding, however, that you and Majority Leader Reid will shortly file a capital formation bill which you prepared without any input from Senate Republicans. It is regrettable that you intend to introduce a bill crafted without Republican participation ...

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“Nevertheless, I stand ready to work with you to craft bipartisan legislation ... [Y]our legislation should closely resemble [the JOBS Act] ... I also encourage you to consider legislation on capital formation introduced by Sen. Scott Brown (S.1791), Sen. Hutchison (S. 556) and Sen. Thune (S. 1831) and Sen. Toomey (S. 1544, S. 1824, and S. 1933) ... Including the provisions of these bills will not only show your willingness to craft a bi-partisan bill, but will also substantially help such legislation become law.” Full letter: http://bit.ly/y6KxH8

NEW THIS MORNING: ROMNEY UP 10 IN BLOOMBERG POLL - Bloomberg’s John McCormick: “Boosted by pocketbook and electability issues, Mitt Romney leads Rick Santorum nationally among Republicans and independents who lean [Republican] ... A Bloomberg National Poll shows Romney with the support of 37 percent, compared with 27 percent for Santorum. Former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich’s backing is 13 percent while U.S. Representative Ron Paul draws 11 percent. ... There are warning signs in the poll for Romney, should the former Massachusetts governor become his party’s presidential nominee. The extended primary season has driven his unfavorability rating up 10 points, to 48 percent, since September.” http://bloom.bg/yv8n6U

PRIVATE EQUITY RECORD CUTS BOTH WAYS - The Bloomberg survey found that 64 percent of GOP voters found that Romney’s private equity background makes him “better prepared” to be president. However, 52 percent of the poll’s full sample said private equity practices “which include investing money to take over companies with a plan to sell them later” are “mostly bad.” Fully 68 percent called the current tax treatment of carried interest “unreasonable.” Full results: http://bit.ly/AEGIOF

TOP STORY: W.H. STEPS UP PUSH ON CHINA TRADE - WSJ’s Sudeep Reddy and Jared A. Favole on pg. A1: “The Obama administration [today] intends to escalate its trade offensive against China ... by pressing the [WTO] to force the export giant to ease its stranglehold on rare-earth minerals critical to high-tech manufacturing. The announcement ... marks a new front in the administration's election-year effort to turn up the heat on China, amid competition from the president's potential GOP rivals on the matter. It could also pressure China to respond to the WTO on an issue that is of high importance to a range of manufacturers. ...

“The U.S., joined by the European Union and Japan, plans to ask the WTO, the international arbiter of trade practices, to open talks with China over its restrictions on exporting the rare-earth minerals, administration officials said. China dominates both the mining of rare-earth materials and the ability to process mined oxides into the metals that serve as key components of everything from smartphones to hybrid vehicles to military equipment. China produces more than 95% of the world's rare-earth minerals.” http://on.wsj.com/x2xgUJ

M.M. MOOD MUSIC: RESPONDING TO ROMNEY - Mitt Romney has made cracking down on unfair trade practices a centerpiece of his economic platform and has pledged to brand China a currency manipulator and impose countervailing tariffs on his first day in office. The White House move will lay down a marker President Obama can reference in debates this fall when he gets hit (as he will) for being “soft on China” in ways that hurt U.S. businesses and anger many labor union members who will be critical in the Ohio and across the Midwest.

GOOD TUESDAY MORNING - Apologies to Steven Harris (@HarrisStevenJ) who actually had the closest guess in the M.M. Jobs Day contest. Harris predicted 225K, just 2K off!

DRIVING THE DAY - President Obama will make the China announcement then is off to Ohio (shock!) with British PM David Cameron to take in an NCAA Tournament play-in game in Dayton ... GOP voters go to the polls in Alabama, Mississippi and Hawaii. Romney appears to have a shot at Alabama and perhaps Mississippi as Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum continue to split the not-Mitt evangelical vote. No matter what happens tonight, Santorum and Gingrich have pledged to soldier on ... NFIB survey at 7:30 a.m. expected to rise to 94.5 from 93.9 ... Retail sales at 8:30 a.m. expected to rise 1.1 percent (0.7 percent ex-autos) ... FOMC statement at 2:15 p.m. expected to contain no new news but perhaps a brighter tone (which could disappoint markets hoping for QE3)

HOT CLICK - New data from the Commerce Department suggests the number of jobs supported by U.S. exports increased by 1.2 million between 2009 and 2011. Building on strong growth in 2010, exports supported approximately 9.7 million jobs in 2011 and the value of U.S. exports of goods and services exceeded $2.1 trillion for the first time in U.S. history. http://1.usa.gov/xLxhjT

TECH BLINK: YAHOO SUES FACEBOOK - Reuters’ Dan Levine and Alexei Oreskovic: “Yahoo Inc sued Facebook Inc over 10 patents that include methods and systems for advertising on the Web, opening the first major legal battle among big technology companies in social media. The lawsuit ... marks a major escalation of patent litigation that has already swept up the smartphone and tablet sectors and high-tech stalwarts such as Apple Inc, Microsoft Corp and Motorola Mobility Holdings Inc. Yahoo's patent lawsuit follows Facebook's announcement of plans for an initial public offering that could value the company at about $100 billion. ... Yahoo, one of the Web's pioneering companies, has seen its revenues decline in recent years at a time when rivals such as Facebook and Google have thrived. ... Yahoo said late last month it was seeking licensing fees from Facebook over its patents and that other companies have already agreed to such licensing deals.” http://reut.rs/AwrDkF

HOT READ: WHISTLE BLOWERS SING FOR CASH - FT’s Kara Scannell on pg. 1: “Company informants tempted by the prospect of multimillion dollar payouts are rushing to US regulators with audio recordings and internal documents to take advantage of a new programme that can make whistleblowing on wrongdoing lucrative, lawyers and regulators say. Many of the complaints, lawyers say, involve allegations of accounting fraud and foreign bribery ... Others include allegations of market manipulation or other crimes by hedge funds and private equity firms. Under the programme, created by the 2010 Dodd-Frank law, any person who reports a credible tip or complaint can qualify for 10 per cent to 30 per cent of the amount that the [SEC] recovers through the courts or a settlement. That could result in a big payday for an informant who uncovers a fraud that leads to a multimillion dollar settlement.” http://on.ft.com/yMLezy

POLL BLAST: OBAMA TAKES BIG HIT - NYT’s Jim Rutenberg and Marjorie Connelly on pg. A1: “Despite improving job growth and an extended Republican primary fight dividing his would-be opponents, President Obama is heading into the general election season on treacherous political ground, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News poll. At a time of rising gas prices, heightened talk of war with Iran and setbacks in Afghanistan, Mr. Obama’s approval rating dropped substantially in recent weeks, the poll found, with 41 percent of respondents expressing approval of the job he is doing and 47 percent saying they disapprove ... The poll provides a statistical reminder of how unsettled and unpredictable this year’s political landscape remains.

“Just one month ago, Mr. Obama reached a critical benchmark by winning approval from 50 percent of Times/CBS News poll respondents ... In a hypothetical matchup against ... Romney, Mr. Obama had a 47 percent to 44 percent advantage, a statistical dead heat ... Against Rick Santorum, the president drew 48 percent compared with 44 percent. In both cases, the difference between the candidates was slightly smaller than it was last month” http://nyti.ms/yfMvNx

BAD SAMPLE? - The nine point drop in the NYT polls seems somewhat implausible given that the only similar move in the same survey during Obama’s presidency came before and after the killing of Osama bin Laden. Full history: http://nyti.ms/Aibdtm

ADMIN RESPONSE: FULL-COURT PRESS ON GAS PRICES - POLITICO’s Darren Samuelsohn and Darren Goode: “The White House ... launched an all-of-the-above press strategy designed to contain the damage from high gas prices. Thus far, the administration’s message hasn’t worked: According to a Washington Post/ABC News poll ... 65 percent of Americans disapprove of how ... Obama is dealing with high gas prices. Obama attempted to counteract that by sitting down for several local TV news interviews on Monday, including visits with anchors from the electoral battlegrounds of Cincinnati, Denver, Des Moines, Las Vegas, Orlando and Pittsburgh.

“The White House also tried to get a jump on the news cycle with a 6 a.m. release of a report describing its efforts to curb foreign oil imports and boost domestic production of fossil fuels. ... Obama also dismissed calls to get gas to a certain price threshold — like Newt Gingrich’s promises of $2.50 a gallon. ‘Well, first of all, nobody believes that. They know that's just politics,’ Obama said. ‘Anybody who says that they've got some magic bullet to get oil, gas prices down to 2 bucks a gallon aren't telling the truth.’” http://bit.ly/yBUfzD

THE TRUTH: NOT MUCH OBAMA CAN DO - WP’s Steven Mufson: “How much does the president have to do with the price of gasoline? .. According to oil experts and economists, not so much — at least in the short term. Today’s oil prices are the product of years and decades of exploration, automobile design and ingrained consumer habits combined with political events in places such as Sudan and Libya, anxiety about possible conflict with Iran, and the energy aftershocks of last year’s earthquake in Japan. ... The price of gasoline is a hardy perennial in presidential campaigns. Jimmy Carter struggled with high gas prices, which had doubled since the Iranian revolution. And during the 2008 presidential race ...

“Obama said in a campaign speech that ‘here in Ohio, you’re paying nearly $3.70 a gallon for gas — 21 / 2 times what it cost when President Bush took office.’ ... What can the president control? This year, Republicans are saying Obama has not done enough to promote domestic drilling, but the U.S. drilling-rig count is twice as high now as it was in 2009. With the exception of a spike in 2008, the current rig count is higher than any year since the early 1980s, according to figures compiled by WTRG Economics.” http://wapo.st/xjYR5R

HOUSING MARKET RISING IN PHOENIX? - WSJ’s Nick Timiraos on pg. A1: “As home prices continue to drop in most cities, a nascent real-estate rebound here holds lessons for the rest of the country. This sprawling desert metropolis was one of the hardest hit housing markets during the bust. Phoenix home prices declined 55% from 2006 through the end of 2011, and Arizona's foreclosure rate jumped to No. 3 in the nation in 2009. ... Now real-estate economists across the country are studying an early but surprisingly broad Phoenix turnaround. The sharp drop in home prices has brought new buyers into the market. Unlike other markets where housing recoveries have been snuffed out by big overhangs of homes for sale and foreclosed properties, inventories are lean here. ...

Phoenix has found a viable formula. Low prices are igniting demand from first-time buyers and investors who are converting the homes to rentals. The local economy is on the upswing with several big employers like Amazon.com Inc. and Intel Corp. hiring again, which is further increasing demand for housing. And the region is benefiting from a surge of buyers from Canada who are using their favorable exchange rate to scoop up bargains in the desert.” http://on.wsj.com/zcBiM5

COMING THURSDAY: “STRESS” TEST RESULTS - WP’s Jia Lynn Yang: “The Federal Reserve said ... it will release its findings this week on how the country’s biggest banks would fare under a nightmare economic scenario. The latest round of stress tests examine whether the banks could withstand a crisis in which unemployment hits 13 percent, stocks fall by half, and housing prices drop 21 percent. Banks that are deemed healthy enough would be allowed by regulators to raise dividends for shareholders or buy back shares ...

“Those that don’t pass the test would have to raise their capital levels and face serious questions from shareholders. The results will be out Thursday afternoon. More than three years after the financial meltdown, the Fed is under pressure to prove it can monitor the banks and prevent a repeat crisis. At the same time, bank executives such as Jamie Dimon of J.P. Morgan Chase are agitating for the Fed to loosen capital requirements on healthy banks so they can return more capital to investors.” http://wapo.st/xYBvFU

CITI A BIG WINNER? - Reuters’ Rick Rothacker: “Citigroup Inc may be a surprise winner when the Federal Reserve reveals the results of bank stress tests ... The third-largest U.S. bank may receive permission to increase its penny-per-share quarterly dividend, analysts say, something long-suffering shareholders have been waiting for since the payout was slashed after a series of government bailouts. ... Analysts generally expect banks to pass the tests, which are meant to show how they would perform in an economic crisis. But investors will be closely watching how generous the Fed is in allowing banks to increase dividends and repurchase shares. Bank stocks have surged so far this year, with the KBW Bank Index climbing 16 percent. ... Stock buybacks could also be ahead for Citigroup. ‘Some of our peers were buoyed by the ability to buy back shares, an option we lacked,’ Chief Executive Vikram Pandit wrote in his letter to shareholders in Citi's 2012 annual report, released last week.” http://reut.rs/w6cdBn

ALSO FOR YOUR RADAR -

BOND MARKET HEATS UP THE STREET - WSJ’s Liz Rappaport on pg. A1: “One of Wall Street's most important profit engines is revving back up. Rising appetites for borrowing and investing are fueling a bond market revival, lifting revenue at Wall Street firms that took a beating last year. For the first time in a year, traders and bankers are optimistic about the future following a dark second half of 2011. ... Gains in the financial firms' fixed-income businesses, which can account for as much as half of revenue, are putting companies including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Morgan Stanley and the J.P. Morgan unit of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. on track to report their strongest numbers since the first quarter of 2011, said bankers and analysts. ...

“Trading in U.S. bond markets, including corporate, mortgage-backed securities and government bonds rose 6% in the first two months of the year from fourth-quarter levels, according to Credit Suisse data. Investors this year have poured $14.5 billion into mutual funds that invest in riskier, high-yield corporate bonds—more than last year's total of $13.8 billion, according to Lipper, a Thomson Reuters company. These corporate bonds, with below investment-grade ratings, have returned 5% for investors this year, according to Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Highly rated corporate bonds have returned 2.8%.” http://on.wsj.com/wOrc0n

CHINESE SAY RENMINBI NO LONGER UNDERVALUED - FT’s Jamil Anderlini in Beijing: “Chinese central bank officials have suggested the renminbi is no longer significantly undervalued after six years of gradual appreciation, citing the country’s large trade deficit in February. According to recently released government figures, last month China notched up its biggest monthly trade deficit since 1998, with imports outpacing exports by $31.5bn. ‘This trade deficit is a positive sign that the renminbi exchange rate is close to its equilibrium level,’ Yi Gang, deputy central bank governor, said at the National People’s Congress, the annual session of China’s rubber-stamp parliament. ...

Since China removed a decade-old peg to the dollar in July 2005, the currency has appreciated roughly 30 per cent against the greenback. Beijing did, however, reinstate a de facto peg during the 2008 financial crisis that kept the renminbi fixed against the dollar for two years. After appreciating five per cent against the dollar in 2011, the renminbi has barely budged this year.” http://on.ft.com/xkoFHD

FIRST LOOK: LABOR PRESSED ON FIDUCIARY DEFINITION - From release going out later this morning from the Financial Services Institute and the Financial Services Roundtable: “Late last year, more than 50 House Republicans and 30 House Democrats sent the Department of Labor two separate letters regarding the Department’s attempt to redefine the term ‘fiduciary.’ The letters directed the Department to follow a set of criteria while writing their new rule - a rule that threatens to price Main Street Americans out of financial advice on their IRAs leaving only the wealthy with access to advice. Today, the Financial Services Institute (FSI) and the Financial Services Roundtable call on Secretary Hilda Solis to release a progress report on the Department’s efforts in re-proposing this rule, and to show how it is following to the criteria outlined by this strong, bi-partisan Congressional request.” Full release: http://bit.ly/wBENXF Letter to Solis: http://bit.ly/xSzp5f

** A message from the Independent Community Bankers of America: The first U.S. community banks were formed in the wake of the American Revolution to stabilize the nation’s postwar finances. By providing loans to entrepreneurs and developers, these community banks were soon stimulating economic growth and financing the rise of the world’s greatest democracy. Their legacy of relationship banking and local economic and job growth continues to this day, with more than 2,500 of the nation’s community banks in business for more than 100 years and the oldest dating to the presidency of John Adams. Today serving communities in every congressional district, community bankers nationwide urge Congress to advance tailored banking regulations that will allow these job creators to continue supporting local economic growth for decades to come. www.icba.org/aboutus **

Authors:

About The Author

Ben White is POLITICO Pro's chief economic correspondent and author of the “Morning Money” column covering the nexus of finance and public policy.

Prior to joining POLITICO in the fall of 2009, Mr. White served as a Wall Street reporter for the New York Times, where he shared a Society of Business Editors and Writers award for breaking news coverage of the financial crisis.

From 2005 to 2007, White was Wall Street correspondent and U.S. Banking Editor at the Financial Times.

White worked at the Washington Post for nine years before joining the FT. He served as national political researcher and research assistant to columnist David S. Broder and later as Wall Street correspondent.

White, a 1994 graduate of Kenyon College, has two sons and lives in New York City.